chapter 5 of Prema Vilasa and some glories of Virachandra and Srinivasa Acarya

[Paramananda das]

 

 

 

This is an amazing chapter about how Srinivasa Acarya  gets so much mercy the mahaprasadam from Jahnava mata and the whip of Abhirama Thakura, by its touch devotees developed pure love of Krsna, on top of this Lord Caitanya had fully empowered Srinivasa Acarya ,he got the mercy of so many of the associates of Lord Caitanya, including

Saranga Thakura, Virachandra,who can understand the exalted nature of Srinivasa Acarya?

 

There is a nice biography by HH Bhakti Ballabha Tirtha Maharaja about the assocaites of Lord Caitanya, and he has written and explained in great details about Virachandra the son of Lord Nityananda Prabhu, He is non different from Ksirodakashayi Visnu :

 

(15)

Shri Viracandra Prabhu (Virabhadra)

 

          sankarshanasya yo vyuhah payobdhi-shayi-namakah |

          sa eva viracandro’bhuc chaitanyabhinna-vigrahah ||

 

The expansion of Sankarshan who sleeps on the ocean of milk, Kshirodakashayi Vishnu, has become Viracandra, who is not different from Chaitanya himself. (Gaura-ganoddesha-dipika 67)

 

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Shri Krishna, is the origin of unlimited expansions and incarnations. He is the avatari. His first expansion is the root Sankarshan or Balaram. This same Balaram appeared with Lord Chaitanya as Nityananda Prabhu. Balaram’s expanison Maha-Sankarshan has his abode in the Vaikuntha planets, and he in turn expands as the purushavataras in the work of creation of the universe, first as the Karanodakashayi Vishnu, who lies in the causal ocean, then as Garbhodakashayi Vishnu, who lies in the ocean within the individual universes, and finally as the Kshirodakashayi Vishnu, who not only lies in the ocean of milk, but is the director of the individual universe and is present as the indweller of every living being within the universe. He is also known as Aniruddha and, in the course of Mahaprabhu Shri Chaitanya’s pastimes, appeared as Virabhadra Prabhu, the son of Lord Nityananda and his energy, Vasudha Devi.

          Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami has written in his Chaitanya Charitamrita that Virabhadra is the best of all the branches of Nityananda trunk of the tree of devotional service which grew with Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes.

 

The best of all of Nityananda’s branches is Virabhadra Goswami. The subbranches which grew out of him are unlimited in number. (Chaitanya Charitamrita 1.11.56)

 

As with all Vishnu-tattvas, in Virabhadra’s life the three energies, Shri, Bhu (or Bhakti), and Nila (or Lila) Shakti, are present. Virabhadra’s Shri-shakti was named Shrimati, who appeared in the village of Jhamaöpur in Hooghly district as the daughter of Yadunatha Acharya and Vidyunmala (or Lakshmi).

 

Yadunandana’s wife Lakshmi was extremely chaste and devoted to her husband. Two daughters were born to her, Shrimati and Narayani, both of whom were startlingly beautiful. At Jahnava’s behest, the fortunate Brahmin gave both of his daughters in marriage to Virabhadra. (Bhakti-ratnakara 13.251-3)

 

Though Virabhadra belongs to the category of Vishnu-tattva, it is his lila to behave like a devotee:

 

The greatest branch coming out of the trunk named Nityananda is Virabhadra Goswami, who also has innumerable branches and subbranches. It is not possible to describe them all. Although he is the Lord of the creation, Virabhadra presented himself as a great devotee. Though transcendental to all Vedic injunctions, he strictly followed the Vedic religion. Though the power of God was operating within him, out of sight to the world, he showed no pride. He is the main pillar holding up the edifice of devotional service to Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. It is by the glorious mercy of Shri Virabhadra Gosani that people all over the world now have the chance to chant the names of Chaitanya and Nityananda. I therefore take shelter of the lotus feet of Virabhadra Goswami for by his mercy all desires are fulfilled. (Chaitanya Charitamrita 1.11.8-12)

 

Shri Narahari Chakravarti Thakur has written the following about Virabhadra in his Bhakti-ratnakara:

 

Nityananda Prabhu had a single son, Virabhadra, who was an ocean of virtue and capable of purifying the world. Who can sufficiently glorify him, for their is no limit to his glories? He is famed as the branch of the Nityananda Prabhu... He is the root of all joy, is sometimes known as Virabhadra and sometimes as Viracandra. If anyone sees him even once he will give up everything and make his lotus feet his all-in-all in life. (Bhakti-ratnakara 9.413-4, 420-1)

 

Virabhadra took initiation from his aunt and stepmother, Jahnava Devi. In his Anubhashya, Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur has written, “Virabhadra Goswami had three disciples who were later celebrated as his sons—Gopijana-vallabha, Ramakrishna and Ramachandra. The youngest, Ramachandra, belonged to the Shandilya dynasty and had the surname Baöavyala. He established his family at Khardaha, and its members are known as the gosvamis of Khardaha. The eldest disciple, Gopijana-vallabha, was a resident of a village known as Lata, near the Manakara railway station in the district of Burdwan. The second, Ramakrishna, lived near Maladaha, in a village named Gayeshapura.”

          It is described in the thirteenth chapter of the Bhakti-ratnakara that Virabhadra took permission from his mother Vasudha to go to Vrindavan. He did the Vraja Dham parikrama with the blessings of Bhugarbha and Shri Jiva Goswamis.

          At Khardaha, the old Shyamasundar temple has a manuscript of the Bhagavat which is said to have been handwritten by Virabhadra Prabhu. Some hold that this was actually written by Nityananda Prabhu himself. Virabhadra personally brought a piece of stone from which the deities worshiped there were carved. Their names are Shyamasundar, Radhavallabha, and Nandadulala. The quay on the Ganges where this stone was unloaded and brought on shore is known as Shyamasundar Ghaö. Virabhadra established the custom of celebrating the birth of Nityananda Prabhu at Khardaha. The current managers of the Khardaha temple have many other legends about the life of Virabhadra Goswami.

          The date of Virabhadra’s appearance is given as Karttik krishna navami. The Gaudiya Vaishnava Abhidhana gives the date as Agrahayan shukla caturdashi.

 

Ballabha Tirtha Maharaja has also written very profundly about Srinivasa Acarya:

 

17)

Shrinivas Acharya

 

Shrinivas’s birth

 

Shrinivas Acharya was born in 1530 AD, on the full moon day of the month of Vaishakh, in the village of Cakhandi, which lies just north of Agradvipa in the district of Nadiya. His father, Gangadhara Bhattacharya, was a Brahmin of the Rarha class. The Bhakti-ratnakara describes the event as follows:

          When Mahaprabhu took sannyas in Katwa, Gangadhara was overcome with grief and began to cry constantly while calling out the names “Ha Chaitanya! Ha Chaitanya!” When other devotees saw him intoxicated in divine love for Mahaprabhu, they nicknamed him Chaitanya Das, a name which stuck with him for the rest of his life.

          Chaitanya Das had no desire for the things of this world, but one day he suddenly felt a strong wish to have a son and told this to his wife, Lakshmipriya. She responded by telling him to immediately go to Puri to ask Mahaprabhu for his blessings. The couple left for Puri, stopping for a few days at the house of Balaram Vipra, Lakshmipriya’s father, in Jajigrama. When they arrived in Puri, Chaitanya Das and his wife paid their obeisances to Mahaprabhu, but before they could speak, the Lord himself said, understanding their desire, “Jagannath Deva will surely fulfill all your desires.”

          The other devotees were curious about what desire Mahaprabhu was talking about and they asked his servant Govinda. But before he could say anything, Mahaprabhu called Govinda and gave him the answer: “Chaitanya Das desires to have a son. Indeed his wife will give birth to a jewel of a son, who will be named Shrinivas. He will be the manifest form of my love and will be non-different from me. He will increase everyone’s enthusiasm for devotion. Through Rupa and others I will bring scriptures into the world, and through Shrinivas, I shall distribute them.”

 

At that time, the Lord called Govinda and said in a deep voice, from a trance state, “The Brahmin has come here, desiring a son. He will soon have one, whom he will name Shrinivas. I will bring scriptures into the world through Shri Rupa and others and these jewel-like books will be distributed by Shrinivas. Shrinivas is the embodiment of pure love for me.  All minds will be enthused upon seeing him.” (Bhakti-ratnakara 2.120-3)

 

Once they had received Mahaprabhu’s blessing, Chaitanya Das and his wife returned to his home and when the auspicious moment came, a son was born to them. Chaitanya Das immediately offered the child to Mahaprabhu.

          The child went through the usual rituals of the first feeding of solid food, name-giving, hair-cutting, etc. All the local associates of Mahaprabhu, such as Govinda Ghosh and the residents of Shrikhanda, Narahari and Raghunandan, poured down affectionate blessings on the child.

 

Early education and travels

 

Shrinivas Acharya was devoted to his parents. He was fortunate to hear both Mahaprabhu’s divine glories as well as Radha and Krishna’s Vrindavan pastimes from his father. The two of them would go into an ecstatic state as they discussed these transcendental topics. Shrinivas’s mother trained him in kirtan.

          He studied grammar, literature and poetic theory from Dhananjaya Vidyavacaspati, and quickly acquired mastery of these subjects. Not long afterward, Shrinivas’s father died.  The loss of his devotee father’s association greatly affected Shrinivas, but the other devotees made a concerted effort to console him and his mother in their grief.

          Shrinivas took his mother and moved from Cakhandi to his maternal grandfather’s house in Jajigrama, where the villagers were overjoyed to see him. Shortly thereafter, he went to visit Narahari Sarkara in nearby Shrikhanda. From Narahari he learned that Mahaprabhu would shortly be ending his earthly pastimes. This news made Shrinivas determined to see the Lord before it happened. He quickly returned to Jajigrama and took permission from his mother to make the trip to Puri. He then joined the devotees on the annual pilgrimage. It was the fifth day of the waxing moon.

          Before arriving in Puri, however, the news arrived that Mahaprabhu had indeed ended his lila. Shrinivas Acharya fainted at the news, and when he came back to consciousness, he decided to commit suicide. However, the Lord himself appeared to him in a dream and told him to complete his journey to Puri. Once in Puri, he again had a dream in which he saw Jagannath, Subhadra and Balaram, as well as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu with his associates. The incarnation of Mahaprabhu’s pleasure potency, Shrila Gadadhara Pandit Goswami met him and both of them were immersed in an ocean of ecstasy. Shrinivas also met Raya Ramananda, Paramananda Puri, Shikhi Mahiti, Sarvabhauma Pandit, Vakresvara Pandit, Govinda, Shankara Pandit, Gopinath Acharya and received blessings from them all.

          Shrinivas Acharya stayed for some time in Puri, hearing Shrimad Bhagavatam from Gadadhara Pandit Goswami. Gadadhara then told him to return to Gauda. When Shrinivas returned, he heard that Advaita Acharya and Nityananda Prabhu had also disappeared. Once again he determined to end his life, but the two Prabhus appeared to him in a dream to assuage his grief and had him give up his intention.

          When he arrived in Nabadwip, Shrinivas was once again plunged into a morass of sorrow at the loss of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Vamshivadanananda Thakur saw him in this condition and approached Vishnupriya Devi and asked her to grant an audience to Shrinivas and bless him. Shrinivas Acharya was amazed to see the intense renunciation and deep faith of Mahaprabhu’s widow. While in Nabadwip, he had a dream of Sachi Devi and received blessings from her, too. Shrinivas then wandered throughout Bengal, going to all the Shripaöas of the associates of Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu, seeking their blessings. He visited Shantipur, Khardaha, Khanakula Krishnanagara, Shrikhanda, etc., and met Murari Gupta, Shrivasa Pandit, Damodar Pandit, Shuklambar Brahmachari, Gadadhara Das, Paramesvari Das, Jahnava Devi, Vasudha Devi, Virabhadra, Abhiram Thakur, Narahari Sarakara Thakur, Raghunandan Thakur. All these great personalities witnesses Shrinivas’s intense devotion and told him to go to Vrindavan. Shrinivas then went to his mother and asked her repeatedly for permission to make the trip which she could not refuse when she saw his great eagerness.

 

Shrinivas arrived in Vraja

 

Shrinivas then travelled through Agradvipa, Katwa, Maureshvara, Ekacakra to Kashi, Ayodhya, and Prayag. He spent a long time travelling and visiting all these holy places before finally arriving in Vraja.  There he heard that Rupa Goswami, Sanatan Goswami, Kashishvara Pandit and Raghunath Bhatta Goswami had all disappeared. Raghunath Das Goswami, Gopal Bhatta Goswami and Jiva Goswami were still living, however. Shrinivas met all three of them and received their blessings. He was initiated by Gopal Bhatta and took instruction in the Vaishnava scriptures from Jiva. In great affection for Shrinivas, Jiva commended him to his deities, Radha Damodar. Shrinivas met Raghunath Das and Krishna Das Kaviraj in Radha Kund and received their blessings. One day shri Jiva heard Shrinivas explain a verse from Ujjvala-nilamani and was so impressed by his erudition that he bestowed the title “Acharya” upon him. Jiva also gave the titles “Thakur” to Narottama and “Shyamananda” to Duhkhi Krishna Das. Jiva ordered Shrinivas to tour the sites of pilgrimage in the Vraja area with Raghava Goswami.

 

The return to Bengal

 

After Shrinivas had attained mastery of the Gaudiya Vaishnava scriptures, Shri Jiva and the other Vaishnavas in Vraja ordered him, Narottama and Shyamananda to take manuscripts of these invaluable books back to Bengal in an ox-cart. They set off on the Shukla Pancami of Agrahayan month. It was a long and dangerous trip, but they were able to cover the greater part of the distance without any trouble. Upon arriving in the Hindu kingdom of Bana Vishnupura, they felt that the danger was over. However, the rumor had reached the capital of Vishnupura that a rich merchant was travelling to Puri with a valuable cargo of merchandise. The ruler of the kingdom led a gang of highwaymen and when he heard that a cargo of great value was passing through his territory, he asked an astrologer to divine the truth of the rumors. The astrologer confirmed that this was indeed a cargo of great value. The king immediately sent a group of robbers to steal it, specifying that they should kill no one. The robbers first worshiped the goddess Candi, then sent out a spy who returned to tell them that everyone in the group accompanying the oxcart was sleeping in exhaustion after eating their night meal. The robbers thought that this was surely Candi’s mercy that a golden opportunity like this had come their way. They seized the oxcart and the books, thinking that they were gold and jewels, and turned them over to the king.

          When Vishnupura’s king saw the large chest, he was delighted at the prospect of finding large amounts of valuables inside. How disappointed he must have been to see nothing but books inside! He turned to the astrologer and asked him how he could have made such a mistake. The astrologer answered, “I can’t understand it. Every time I made my calculations I came up with the same conclusion: this chest is full of priceless jewels! It is incredible, I don’t know why my calculations have gone wrong!”

          The mere sight of the holy books had a purifying effect on the king, however, and he regretted having stolen them. Indeed, he desired to meet with the acharya of the books. That night he had a dream in which the Granthacharya appeared to him and this pacified him somewhat.

          The next morning, Shrinivas, Narottama and Shyamananda awoke to find the chest of books missing. They searched everywhere, but when they failed to find any clue of the books’ whereabouts, they felt so depressed that they considered killing themselves. Some local villagers saw the distressed condition of the three Vaishnavas and immediately suspected the robber king, Vira Hambira. Shrinivas made some further investigations and was assured that he would be able to find more information from the king himself. The three Vaishnavas felt some hope and abandoned their suicidal intentions. Shrinivas Acharya decided to remain in Vishnupura in the hope of finding the books, but he sent Narottama to Kheöuri and Shyamananda to Orissa.

 

The conversion of Vira Hambira

 

While staying in Vishnupura, Shrinivas heard from a Brahmin named Krishnavallabha that Vira Hambira liked to listen to Shrimad Bhagavatam and daily attended classes. On the next day, Shrinivas went with this Brahmin to the hall where the Bhagavat classes were held. The Brahmin introduced Shrinivas to the king as a great Vaishnava, and the king indeed observed the characteristics of a great person in him and was attracted to him. The King expressed a desire to hear Shrinivas speak on the Bhagavat and Shrinivas agreed, thinking that this might be a good opportunity to recover the books. So he started to give lectures on the Bhagavat on a daily basis. The King was enchanted by Shrinivas’s unprecedented explanations of the Bhagavat in his sweet voice. Shrinivas Acharya primarily preached Mahaprabhu’s dharma through speaking on the Bhagavat and kirtan, while Narottama and Shyamananda primarily used the medium of kirtan. The style of kirtan that these three acharyas used were named manohara-sahi, garanahaöi, and reneöi.

          Vira Hambira arranged for a secluded dwelling to be given to Shrinivas Acharya. One day, when he had the opportunity to find the king alone in his apartments, Shrinivas recounted the entire story of the journey from Vraja and the theft of the manuscripts. The King immediately confessed, showing great sorrow for his misdeed, and had the chest of books returned to its owner. In great relief, Shrinivas immediately sent messengers to Vrindavan, to Narottama and Shyamananda with the good news. In the course of time, Vira Hambira and his entire entourage all took initiation from Shrinivas and dedicated their entire lives and wealth to him. Vira Hambira’s initiated name was Chaitanya Das.

 

Shrinivas’s marriage

 

After staying in Vana Vishnupura for some time, Shrinivas Acharya returned to his maternal grandfather’s house in Jajigrama. Then he set off on another tour of Katwa, Nabadwip and other important towns in Bengal. Shrinivas respected Narahari Sarakara of Shrikhanda greatly and was also very devoted to his saintly mother. When Narahari heard Shrinivas’s mother express her desire to see her son married, he gave him the order to do so. Even prior to receiving this order, Shrinivas had received the same command from Advaita Acharya in a dream. Though he felt somewhat ashamed, he realized that he could not ignore the wishes of Narahari, his mother and Advaita Prabhu. He thus agreed to get married and was wed to Ishvari, the devoted daughter of Gopal Chakravarti of Jajigrama.

          It is not always easy to understand the divine activities of Mahaprabhu’s devotees. Only someone who is totally surrendered to the Lord and his devotees can have access to their glories.

 

Shrinivas’s preaching activities

 

Shrinivas Acharya started to teach the Goswamis’ books to his disciples in Jajigrama. One of his most important disciples was Ramachandra Kaviraj, the son of Shrikhanda resident Ciranjiva Sena. Shrinivas gave Ramachandra the title kaviraja after hearing his poems. Narottama Thakur had a close friendship with Ramachandra Kaviraj and even wrote about it in one of his songs:

 

Please be merciful, Prabhu Shrinivas Acharya! Narottama Das begs for the association of Ramachandra.

 

When Shuklambar Brahmachari, Gadadhara Das, Narahari Sarkara and Dvija Hari Das all ended their earthly activities, Shrinivas Acharya once again felt overcome by grief and made another trip to Vrindavan. Once again he met with Gopal Bhatta and Shri Jiva Goswamis, as well as with Bhugarbha and Lokanatha Goswamis, and these great devotees spoke to him encouragingly, reducing his feelings of loss. Ramachandra Kaviraj and Shyamananda Prabhu also joined Shrinivas in Vraja on this occasion.

          When he returned to Gauda, Shrinivas joined in the festivities occasioning the anniversaries of the departure of Gadadhara Das in Katwa, Narahari in Shrikhanda and Dvija Hari Das in Kancanagariiya. From there he went to Budhari village, where Ramachandra Kaviraj and Govinda Kaviraj hosted him with great opulence.

          Narottama Das Thakur had also left Vrindavan on Lokanatha Goswami’s orders, returning to his home in Kheöuri. On the full moon day of Phalguna, he established the worship of six sets of deities in the temple there: Gauranga, Vallabhikanta, Vrajamohana, Shri Krishna, Radhakanta, and Radharamana. Shrinivas Acharya performed the installation ceremony and the first puja.

          Jahnava Devi was also present at this great event. After the festival, she went on to Vraja with her entourage. Upon her return, she met with Shrinivas Acharya at Katwa and then went with him to spend some time in Jajigrama.

          Shrinivas Acharya made another trip to Nabadwip with Narottama and Ramachandra Kaviraj, performing the parikrama of the nine islands, each of which represents one of the limbs of devotional service.

          When Raghunandan Thakur entered the nitya-lila, Shrinivas Acharya went to Shrikhanda to help conduct the funeral festival in his honor. He returned with a heavy heart to Jajigrama, and from there went to see his disciples in Vana Vishnupura. He was received by the excited King and the other residents of the town. There, he received an order from Mahaprabhu himself in a dream to accept the hand of Gaurangapriya, the daughter of a certain Raghava Chakravarti. Raghava and his wife Madhavi had been searching for a suitable husband for their daughter with no success. They also received the order in a dream to give their daughter in marriage to Shrinivas. As a result, Shrinivas married for a second time.

          The pure devotee has no other objective in life than to fulfill the desires of the Supreme Lord. They are thus ready to do anything if it pleases the Lord. None of their activities has the slightest hint of material desire in it. Shrinivas Acharya is the avesha incarnation of Mahaprabhu himself and his transcendental activities can only be described by someone who has received his special blessings.

 

 

 May Srinivasa Acarya bless us with pure bhakti at the lotusfeet of Lord Caitanya:

ys

 Paramananda das

 

 

 

Prema Vilasa

CHAPTER 5

 

          All glories to the merciful Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.  My dear listeners, as soon as Shrinivasa entered Khardaha he was filled with ecstatic love and began to dance.  Viracandra prabhu, who was sitting near his mother at that time, suddenly began to tremble.  Noting this, Thakurani said, "Most probably some great Bhagavata has come to our place.  Perhaps it is Shrinivasa of Cakandi which is the cause of your trembling.  I also hear many people calling out the name of Radha Krishna.  My son, these are all auspicious signs, please find out who has arrived here.  If it is Shrinivasa, bring him to me immediately to cool my burning heart."

          At that time Isana came before her and said, "A beautiful boy is waiting outside, crying."  She at once ordered her son to bring him in.  When Viracandra came out of the house and saw the divine beauty of the boy, he at once recognized him to be Shrinivasa and embraced him warmly.  Shrinivasa fell at his feet and Viracandra lifted him up affectionately. When Shrinivasa related his identity, Viracandra said, "You are the most welcome friend.  Providence is most merciful to me to give me the chance to meet such a jewel-like devotee as you." 

          Viracandra brought Shrinivasa into the house where Shri Isvari was waiting anxiously.  Simply upon seeing the boy she was overcome with ecstatic love and began to call out the names of Chaitanya and Nityananda.  Heaving a sigh of relieve she uttered the name of Navadvipa.  While holding Shrinivasa's hand, Viracandra requested his mother to give Shrinivasa permission to go to Vrndavana.  Shri Jahnava said, "Go to Vrndavana as soon as possible and take shelter at the lotus feet of Rupa Gosvami.  It you do not go soon you will not get their darsana.  Go quickly to Vraja and seek the refuge of Gopala Bhatta."  She ordered someone to bring prasadam for Shrinivasa and told Viracandra to write a letter to Abhirama and give it to Isana to deliver.  In the letter she suggested that Abhirama whip Shrinivasa thrice, this was a riddle which no one could understand.  Thereafter, Viracandra gave Shrinivasa the remnants of Isvari's food. Relishing the prasadam, Shrinivasa forgot himself in the ecstacy of love.  Viracandra took hold of Shrinivasa's hands, which brought him back to his senses.  Viracandra also advised Shrinivasa to go quickly to Vrndavana, otherwise he would miss Shri Rupa. 

          Isana then took Shrinivasa to meet Abhirama.  Bowing at the feet of Abhirama, Isana delivered Isvari message requesting Abhirama to bestow devotional love upon Shrinivasa.  Abhirama happily greeted Shrinivasa, offering he and Isana a seat.  He was pleased that Isvari had suggested that he whip Shrinivasa.  But first he decided to test the boy by giving him eight kadis (ancient paise) and request him to spend the money as he saw fit. In this way he would detect whether the boy was detached or not.

          When Shrinivasa received the kadis he considered carefully what should be done with them.  He decided to buy some rice and green bananas.  Sitting on the bank of the river he cooked these items.  Thakura Abhirama then told two Vaishnavas to go to Shrinivasa and become his guests when the boy was about to eat. Obeying Abhirama they devotees went to Shrinivasa just as he was offering the food to Krishna and water for washing the mouth.  When the devotees requested Shrinivasa for some food Shrinivasa was most pleased to have the opportunity to serve the Vaishnavas.  He served all the rice on three plates and requested the Vaishnavas to take prasadam.  They were greatly satisfied and reported to Abhirama that the food served to them tasted just like nectar. Being pleased, Abhirama requested Isana to bring Shrinivasa before him.  Meanwhile Abhirama took his whip and placed it at his left side. 

          When Shrinivasa arrived and bowed at Abhirama's feet, Gosvami whipped him thrice with his own hand.  At that time Malini, the wife of Abhirama, entered the room and caught hold of Abhirama's hands and said, "Stop whipping the boy for he is overcome with divine love, this brahmana boy is filled with the spirit of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu."  Malini then took Shrinivasa into another room and served him with the utmost care.  Shrinivasa spent a very peaceful night in the home of Abhirama.

          The following morning Abhirama instructed Shrinivasa, "Go to Vrndavana quickly and take shelter at the feet of Gopala Bhatta Gosvami.  There you will meet greatly renounced devotees like Sanatana, Rupa, Lokanatha, and Raghunatha dasa.  You will be to achieve everything by the grace of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Now you should leave, Narahari Sarkara has been eagerly waiting for you.  After meeting him go to Vrndavana."

          When it was time to depart, Shrinivasa began to cry, expressing his doubt that he would be able to perform and useful service for the Lord.  Abhirama corrected him saying, "You do not know your own self.  You have been blessed by Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.  He will help you to spread the sankirtana movement throughout the world.  Now go to Vrndavana without delay.  I also benedict you so that no one will harm you along the way." Feeling reassured, Shrinivasa happily departed.

          When Shrinivasa meet Narahari Sarkara again, Thakura also advised him to start for Vrndavana soon, but first he should take permission from his mother.  Early that evening Shrinivasa went to his house and bowed at the feet of his mother.  Her heart was broken when he requested to leave for Vrndavana.  She did not want to be separated from her beloved son, who was her only shelter.  Thus she forbade Shrinivasa from going.  Shrinivasa, however, was relentless.  repeatedly he requested his mother until she finally gave her consent.  That night he dreamed that he began his journey to Vrndavana.

          Meanwhile, in Vrndavana Sri Rupa Gosvami was becoming very anxious about delayed arrival of Shrinivasa.  Shri Rupa was feeling weak due to the disappearance of his beloved brother Sanatana. He did not know how much longer he could remain in this world. In the morning Shri Rupa went to the tomb of Sanatana.  Sobbing, pitifully he called out the name of Shrinivasa.  From there he went to visit Shri Jiva Gosvami and others who had been living on the banks of the Jamuna.  Seeing them Rupa Gosvami commented, "You are all looking very happy, but I am in great distress.  I do not know why Shrinivasa is taking so long to come to Vrndavana. He was born in a brahmana family simply to fulfill the mission of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.  But now it is urgent that arrive here soon, otherwise I am afraid that I will not meet him."  Holding the hand of Shri Jiva he said, "I believe Shrinivasa has started from Yajigrama last night.  Please watch carefully for his arrival in Vraja."

          In the meantime Shrinivasa began his journey to Vrndavana. Fearing that the associates of Mahaprabhu would leave this world before his arrival in Vraja, Shrinivasa practically ran the whole way to Vrndavana, absorbed in thoughts of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Rupa, Sanatana, and Bhatta Raghunatha.  The fear of not meeting them constantly plagued his mind.  In this way he reached Gadidvara and from there Patna.  Some days he fasted entirely, while on others days he would take small amounts of foot.  When he reached Varanasi he went to the bank of the Ganges and visited the ghata on the river where Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had once taken His bath.  Shrinivasa bowed his head to the ghata.  On the western side of the river was the house of Candrasekhara.  Previously Sanatana Gosvami, in the guise of a darvesa, used to wait for the darsana of Mahaprabhu in the western wing of this house.  A tulasi tree was now growing on this spot and Shrinivasa offered his obeisances there.  He then entered into the house where he met an aged Vaishnava.  Shrinivasa bowed at the devotee's feet.  The elderly Vaishnava embraced Shrinivasa and inquired about his identity.  The devotee of overjoyed to meet Shrinivasa and explained that he was a disciple of Shri Candrasekhara, by whose desire he was staying there to look after the house.  He then showed Shrinivasa the seat of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.  Feeling great separation from the Lord and His devotees, the elderly devotee became distraught and fell unconscious.  With the utmost care Shrinivasa helped him to return to come to his senses.  The two spent the entire night discussing the pastimes of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

          In the morning Shrinivasa took his leave and carried on to Prayaga.  He took his bath in the Triveni and remained there for the day.  When he resumed his journey the following day, a pious gentleman offered Shrinivasa four paise, which Shrinivasa lived off of for two days.  The tiring journey took its toll on Shrinivasa's health and he began to inquire how much further it was to Vrndavana.  When he found out that he was still four days journey from Vrndavana, Shrinivasa took his bath at a well and lay down under a tree, utterly fatigued. 

          At that time five Vaishnavas from Vrndavana happened to pass by.  Finding Shrinivasa completely exhausted, they gave him some dried peas and gur.  After eating, Shrinivasa drank some water and was rejuvenated.  The Vaishnava's and Shrinivasa then chanted happily together for some time.  Shrinivasa enquired from them about Vrndavana and they told him that there he could meet Rupa, Gopala Bhatta, Lokanatha Gosvami, Shri Jiva, and Bhugarbha.  They also reported that Shri Sanatana Gosvami had departed from the world.  With a heavy heart, Shrinivasa bit farewell and continued on towards Vraja.  He arrived at Agra, and from there went to Gokula.  After crossing the river Jamuna he arrived at the house of Nanda. Early the next morning he entered Mathura, the birth place of Lord Krishna, and visited many holy places there.  Seeing the beauty of Mathura, he was reminded of the descriptions of Vaikuntha as given in the scriptures.  The residents of Mathura were all of cheerful disposition.  Shrinivasa visited Visrama Ghata where he placed the sacred water of the place on his head and sat facing east.  While sitting there he overheard three Vrajavasis passing by talking about the disappearance of Sanatana, then Raghunatha Bhatta, and recently Rupa Gosvami. Unable to believe his ears, Shrinivasa approached the passersby with folded hands and asked what they were talking about.  They replied, "O brother, what can we say?  Vrndavana is  now empty. It is our misfortune that we did not die before al these happenings.  We cannot bear the separation of Shri Rupa Gosvami."

          Shrinivasa was stunned.  Immediately he got up and began walking, lamenting pitifully. "O Providence,  I cannot accuse you, but my ill fate is drowning me in an ocean of misery. Blinded by tears, I am unable to see the path before me." Lamenting in this way, Shrinivasa wandered aimlessly throughout the streets completely oblivious to his surroundings.  Eventually he sat down under a tree and decided that he would simply return home.  It is impossible to describe the miserable condition of Shrinivasa.  Only by the grace of my spiritual master am I able to give some description of this incident.